


Sweltering

by Dylalan



Series: Lone Wanderer [2]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Charon hates, Charon hates Benny, Charon hates Heat, Charon hates New Vegas, Courier is Lone Wanderer | Lone Wanderer is Courier, F/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:22:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25060825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dylalan/pseuds/Dylalan
Summary: Charon hadn’t realized how much he would miss D.C until they were far, far away from it.
Relationships: Benny (Fallout)/Female Courier, Butch DeLoria/Female Lone Wanderer (Past), Charon/Female Courier
Series: Lone Wanderer [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2010721
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Sweltering

Charon hadn’t realized how much he would miss D.C until they were far, far away from it.

He missed sitting in Alex’s Megaton home, watching her as she furiously ripped through the pages of a Geck manual. As she tried to program Wadsworth into actually being of some use to them. Or even when she filled the house with the random knick-knacks she insisted on picking up around the wasteland. Or when she would drag them to Moriarty’s, long after she had disposed of the bar’s namesake, and insist that they would not be leaving until Gob had a drink with them. But those fond memories mixed with the bad. Alex’s unconscious form, bleeding out. Med-x syringes littering the floor. Her sobbing over Dogmeat, as the dog, too sweet to be in the wastes, died from a bullet wound.

But what he missed most, out of everything, was that D.C was never this fucking hot. Charon hated the desert. The sun was terrible for his skin, or what was left of it. The sand blew into him, and while that might not be a problem for his skin having companions, the sand would work it’s way into Charon’s exposed muscles, leaving him in awful pain. He didn’t, wouldn’t complain about it though.

And that led into another thing he missed about D.C. The lack of Benny. Boone, he could handle.

Benny, not so much.

He reminded the ghoul of Butch, in a way, but even Butch had never complained that much. And Butch had complained constantly.

Benny also couldn’t shut up. About an independent Vegas, about taking over, about his hair, about the Sierra Madre. Charon couldn’t stand it.

So he would stay in the back, scoping out with Boone. Close enough to keep Alex safe, but far enough that Benny wouldn’t give him a headache. He preferred it that way. Boone was good company, in that he didn’t like talking, and would only do so when asked a question, or if he spotted an enemy. He was a perfect match for Charon to work with.

But that didn’t solve the problem with heat, and with sand. Alex had tried to help him as much as she could. Forcing all of them to strip combat armor, to take it apart.

At that moment, all three sat in Alex’s motel room in Novac. She had refused to stay anywhere near New Vegas, much to the three other’s relief. Neither Boone or Charon liked the place, and every securitron was wanting to kill Benny at the moment.

Boone had gone up into Dinky, to take watch for the night. Benny had passed out an hour earlier. Charon had scoffed at that. Weak. But he had appreciated it, for he finally got to spend some time alone with Alex.

He looked at his employer for a moment, staying quiet. That was another thing he had missed even just slightly. How she used to be. When she was still fresh from the vault, still hopeful. Still believing in the good in the world.

He could picture her perfectly in his mind, her in her armored vault suit, the bright blue almost burning his eyes. Her approaching Azrukhal, caps in hand, when she had heard about his contract. Her disgust at the man’s behavior.

Her lack of fear when Charon had shot him.  
But that innocence had quickly melted away. That person, destroyed by the Enclave, by the Brotherhood, by the wastes. Stripped bit by bit. Her eyes growing colder, the med-x taking more and more of their caps, as he watched, desperately, as she fell further and further away. It had taken everything he had to pull her back, in part thanks to Butch. Charon cringed as he thought of the boy.

The reason they had come to New Vegas. To this hated place. For her to escape the pain of seeing the boy she had grown up with, who she had grown to love, the person who had helped her escape the pain of her dad’s death, ripped to shreds by a deathclaw.

The pain of her not being able to help him, until it was far too late.

That day, she had become who she was now. A mixture of who she was before, and after. She had buried Butch’s beloved Tunnel Snakes jacket. She had packed up their Megaton home that day, and they had set off, off to the West. They had said goodbye only to Gob, giving him letters for those they cared about, and left.

Three months later, they had arrived in Nevada. Three days after that, Alex had got a job working as a courier.

“You okay, Charon?” He snapped out of his reminiscing, his employer's voice bringing him to attention.

“Fine. Is there something you need, mistress?”

Alex let out a slight laugh, being careful not to wake Benny. “Fine. Sure you are. You only call me mistress when you’ve been reminiscing. I just wanted to show you what I made.” She held up the thing she had been working on for the past few weeks. “I took that bounty hunting gear Randall gave me, and fitted it with the fabric from the combat armor. It’s not too thick, so it shouldn’t be unbearably hot, but it will certainly be better than what you’ve been wearing.” Charon glanced at his leather armor, thrown haphazardly into the corner of the room. “And, here’s the best part. It should keep the sand out of your arms, and your chest.” Charon gave her a rare grin.

“Thank you, Alex.” She gave him a returning grin.

Maybe he could deal with New Vegas after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Poor Dogmeat. I'm sorry for writing you out, but I realized I had no way of fitting him in.  
> I put in a reference to New Vegas Bounties, a mod I always play with, and highly recommend.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
